Survival
by Mogo Girl
Summary: Cait and String finally contemplate moving their relationship to the next level when tragedy strikes. Now it's not a question if their love will survive but if one of them will survive!
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or back story of Airwolf. All characters are property of Bellasario, CBS and whoever else created them. I only borrow them for short periods of time, harass them and put them back on the shelf My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

_Summary: Cait and String finally contemplate moving their relationship to the next level when tragedy strikes. Now it's not a question if their love will survive but if one of them will survive! _

Survival

Chapter 1

It had been 36 hours since Caitlin O'Shannessy had spoken to another human being. For the first 12 hours, it had been the way she wanted it. For the last 24, not so much.

Two days earlier, Cait had been looking forward to a rejuvenating weekend at a secluded, mountain spa in Santa Fe, New Mexico, she had read about. She had told no one, not even Dom or Hawke, where she was going. Just that she was going to get some rest and relaxation and that she'd see them in four days after taking a few extra days off of work to make it a long weekend.

Work had been hectic for the last several months with a heavy schedule of stunts and flying lessons. Add in a few harried Airwolf Missions for The Firm on top of that and Cait was ready for some time to herself . She loved her work, Dom and Hawke, and even the Airwolf missions that kept her life exciting, but sometimes she just needed some alone time to think, get her head back on straight, and "be a girl".

She could have just spent the weekend at Hawke's mountain cabin but, truth be told, she needed a little time away from Stringfellow Hawke, too. For three years, she had hoped that her relationship with the steel-blue eyed, brooding pilot would move to something more than co-worker and friend and for the past couple of weeks, String seemed to be coming to his senses and things seemed to be moving in that direction. While she was happy about it, she wanted time to think everything over and make sure it was really what was best for them. As much as she longed for a romantic relationship with him, she didn't want to jeopardize the bond they already had. She knew any relationship with Stringfellow Hawke would be difficult and challenging and that if it didn't work out, things could never go back to the way they were. While she believed the risk would be worth it, it was a lot to think about.

So, she had rented a convertible, packed up, and headed out towards Santa Fe, New Mexico. The drive would take her about 12 hours but she had always enjoyed traveling on her own, top down and music blaring, as she sang along at the top of her lungs. The first day would get her to the spa that was located in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Then she'd spend two days getting massaged, pampered, steamed and manicured, before heading back on Tuesday. It was just what the doctor had ordered.

Or, it would have been if it hadn't been for the detour that took her off the beaten path. Entering the foothills, where the road began to curve up and around the mountain, Cait had encountered a fresh rockslide blocking the road. Seeing no way around it, she stopped and pulled out her map that she had brought with her. Searching the sparsely populated area, she spotted what appeared to be an old logging road about a half mile back that should take her on a 3 mile detour that would wind around the slide and get her back on the main road without too much time wasted.

Glancing at her watch as she folded the map back up, she realized it was almost 8:30 p.m. It would be getting dark soon and the mountain air would be turning cool, even in this early summer month of June. She pressed the button to put the top back up on the car and turned around to find the road.

Shortly after turning onto the detour, she soon realized that it was little more than a rutted dirt path. As her car bumped and scraped along the narrow lane, Cait began to wonder if this was such a good idea. Knowing she had already come about a mile, she decided to stick it out and continue on. Almost immediately she realized she had made the wrong decision.

As the sun set, Cait was having a harder and harder time seeing what was already a difficult road to travel. Even the headlights weren't helping much due to the overgrown, dense foliage that lined both sides of the dirt lane. At this point, however, turning the car around was no option as the road was too narrow. Pushing forward, Cait suddenly felt the car lurch forward as she failed to see the sharp turn to the right and veered straight off the road. Before she could even react, Cait and her car were barreling down a steep mountainside, gaining momentum even as she crashed against trees and rocks and underbrush.

Cait felt the car rolling and tumbling and she could hear herself screaming as she was thrown around the interior of the car as it flipped over and over. By the time the car came to a rest, stopped by a row of trees, Cait had been partially thrown from the car with the lower half of her body still trapped underneath the wreckage. She was bleeding from several cuts on her head and torso and arms and she was sure that at least one of her legs still trapped under the vehicle was broken. Within minutes, she passed out.

AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW

"I don't get it, String," Dom said as he shook his head and threw the stick he'd been whittling on into the campfire that String had built earlier. The two had decided to spend the weekend up at String's cabin anyways even though Cait had declined the invitation. "Why'd you let her go? You two kids were finally getting something started and then you just let her take off for four days to God knows where. I just don't get it."

"Look, Dom. I'm not happy about it either but who am I to stop her? It's not like I have any right to keep her from going," Hawke replied as he continued to stare into the flames.

"No right?!" Dom exclaimed as he looked as his surrogate son in disbelief. "Dammit String, you two have been dancing around each other for three years, both harboring feelings for each other but both of you too damn stubborn to admit it! You finally get up the nerve to ask her out on a real date and the first thing she does is run off! It's Saturday night, you should be leading that girl around a dance floor somewhere, not here sitting around a campfire with an old fuddy duddy like me."

"It's not that easy, Dom, and you know it," Hawke stated simply as he looked across the fire at his mentor. "She needed to time to sort things out, to make sure we were doing the right thing."

"Well, of course you're doing the right thing!" the older man said with exasperation. "Who else understands you better or would put up with all she has had to put up with for so long? That girl loves you and I'm pretty sure you love her back. It doesn't get more simple than that, String."

"Yeah," was all Hawke said with a sigh as he turned his gaze back into the fire knowing he wouldn't be able to convince Dom, the hopeless romantic, any different. Truth be told, however, he felt that Caitlin was right…they needed to make sure that getting involved was the right thing to do. She had become a very special part of his life and if a romantic relationship were to turn sour, he was afraid he'd lose her all together. He'd rather keep her as just a friend then for that to happen. A little time away would allow both of them to make sure of what they wanted.

As he stared into the fire thinking about Caitlin, a cold chill swept across the hairs on the back of his neck. Standing up, Hawke took a quick scan of the area surrounding the cabin.

"What is it, String?" Dom asked with concern. He'd seen that look on the younger man's face before and it usually didn't indicate anything good. Hawke had a proven track record of having an almost sixth sense for trouble.

"I don't know but something's wrong," Hawke stated matter of factly. "Let's take a look around," he said as he doused the fire and indicated for Dom to go around the North side of the house as he headed around the South side.

Meeting up at the back of cabin, both men indicated that they had found nothing out of the ordinary.

"Everything's appears to be alright," Dom said as he took one last look around.

"Yeah, maybe," Hawke replied with a skeptical look on his face.

"Hey kid, we're both tired and whether you want to admit it or not, I know you're feeling kinda lonely without a certain red-headed pilot here tonight. Why don't we call it a night, huh? We can get up early tomorrow and get some good fishing in first thing. It'll get your mind off her. "

"You go ahead, Dom. I'm going to take one more look around and make sure the fire's out. I'll see you in the morning."

Dom nodded and started to head towards the door. After a few steps, a thought hit him and he turned around to call for Hawke. "Hey kid!"

"Yeah?" Hawke asked as he looked back at the older man.

"Don't you go creating worry where there ain't none to be had. I know you're thinking about that so-called curse of yours. Cait's fine and she'll be back in a few days. Then you two can pick up where you left off. You'll see. Get some sleep. "

Hawke just nodded wearily in response. In all honesty, Dom had just hit upon his worst fear. Having found nothing out of place at the cabin, he could only surmise that something might be wrong with Cait. But he couldn't just go running off after her on a hunch. For one thing, she'd chew him up one side and down the other if he was wrong and interrupted her long weekend. And two, he had no idea where she was. Maybe Dom was right. Maybe he was just making trouble where there was none. Now, if he could just get the sick feeling in the pit of his gut to convince him otherwise.

TBC…

_Well it's been a long while but the muse finally came up with something new to write about. I hope you enjoy _


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or back story of Airwolf. All characters are property of Bellasario, CBS and whoever else created them. I only borrow them for short periods of time, harass them and put them back on the shelf My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

Survival

Chapter 2

Sunday - Mid Day

Cait moaned as she turned her head away from the sharp sunlight that was poking at her eyelids. _"What the hell did I do last night?"_ she thought as she struggled to clear her mind from the fog that it seemed to be drowning in. _"And would somebody please close those damn curtains!" _

Slowly opening her eyes, she made every effort to try and focus on her surroundings. It wasn't working, her vision was cloudy and every time she tried to move her head around, the most intense, throbbing pain she'd ever felt seemed to shoot through her skull. "_Well, O'Shannessy, you must have really tied one on last night. I guess Hawke must have gotten to you more than you thought by asking you out on that date," _she thought to herself as she mindlessly raised her hand to her aching head. "_It's a good thing he's not here to see you now."_

As her hand reached her forehead she was puzzled when it felt slick with moisture. _"What the…?"_ she thought as she brought her hand back in front of her face and could see something red on her fingertips. Suddenly, with the sight and smell of the blood, the events of the night before came rushing back to her. Her kneejerk reaction was to try and sit up but she quickly realized that not only was that not a good idea, but it was pretty much impossible. Her body screamed out in pain as she tried to move, at least the part of her body that she could feel. While her head, chest and abdomen seemed to be on fire, everything from her waist down might as well have belonged to someone else for all she could feel of them. With the realization of her situation, panic quickly began to set in.

Forcing her eyes back open, she could make out the blurry shape of her car that she was currently trapped under. Turning her head to either side, the scenery didn't get much more encouraging, nothing but a fuzzy landscape full of rocks and trees and brush. Cait's breathing became shallow and more rapid as her anxiety level went sky high.

"_No!" _she quickly demanded of herself. _"You can't do this…you have to find some way to stay calm and get help! First, I need to know how long I've been here. I told Hawke I'd call him Tuesday night when I got back. Until then, Hawke and Dom won't have any reason to come look for me. I have to figure out a way to either let someone know I'm here or stay alive until they come searching." _

Gauging the heat of the sun shining directly down upon her, Caitlin quickly figured it must be mid day. She just wasn't sure WHICH day or how long she'd been stuck unconscious under that car. A glint of light from the direction of her wrist suddenly reminded her that the watch she had on included not only time, but date as well. Cait knew that she had left L.A. on Saturday, June 5th. Carefully lifting her wrist close enough to her face so that she could see her watch, she was able to make out the number 6 on the calendar dial.

"_So, it must be Sunday. And my watch says 12:45 pm. I've been out for over 12 hours!", _she reasoned. Knowing she had survived this long was slightly encouraging but on the other hand, Cait knew she was in real trouble. It would be at least 48 more hours before Dom or Hawke even had an inkling that she was missing and therefore they would have no reason to come and search for her. While she had made it through the first night, she wasn't sure she could survive another night in the harsh mountain elements and the thought of trying to make another two full days without any food or water didn't leave her with much hope.

"_Alright, O'Shannessy, you've gotten yourself into one fine mess. It's going to be up to you to find a way out of this. No Hawke, no Airwolf, nobody but yourself. Time to quit feeling sorry for yourself and just do what you have to do," _Caitlin actually spoke the words out loud. She knew the first order of business would be keep herself awake as much as possible. Knowing her injuries were serious, she didn't want to risk slipping back into an unconsciousness state she knew she might not come out of.

Taking another look around, she inventoried her surroundings. There wasn't much more than what she saw the first time but she did spot an object just out of reach to her left. Turning her head as far over as she could she was excited to see that it was her purse. She knew that during her trip she had stuck a small thermos of coffee and some peanuts in it to snack on during the drive. It wasn't much but it might serve to keep her alive a little bit longer. Reaching out her arm as far as she could, the straps were still just out of reach. Caitlin wasn't sure if the tears in her eyes were from the pain as she stretched out her battered and bruised body or the irony of having life-giving food just out of reach where she could see it but not get to it.

"_C'mon, don't give up now. It's right there…you just need something to help you reach it!" _Caitlin chided herself. Feeling around next to her, her hand ran across a small branch that had most likely broken off one of the pine trees as the car tumbled through it. Grabbing the branch, Caitlin used it as an extension of her arm and after several tiring attempts, was able to hook the straps of her bag and pull it closer to her. Unfortunately, before she could do anything further, she realized that the exertion had been too much and though she tried hard to fight it, she passed into unconsciousness once more.

AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW

Sunday – 6:00 pm

"Earth to String!" Dom chided as he stepped around Hawke and flipped the fish that was cooking in the pan just before it burnt.

"Huh?" String asked as he looked with bewilderment at Dom.

"Just move out of the way, kid. I'll finish supper. I swear, I don't know where you've been all day but it sure hasn't been here. I worked hard to catch that fish and I'll be damned if I let you burn it!" Dom exclaimed with one of his trademark "Hmmphs".

"Dom, forget about the damn fish," Hawke directed. "I can't ignore this anymore. I don't know what the hell is going on but something's wrong and I know it has something to do with Cait. I haven't been able to shake this feeling all day."

Turning the flame off on the stove and turning to look at String, Dom could see the tension in the younger man's face. "Okay, String, I know you well enough not ignore your 'feelings' but just where do you propose we start looking? Caitlin could be anywhere in a 500 mile radius of here and even in The Lady that's just too wide of a search."

"I don't know, Dom, but I can't just sit here and wait. Let's start with her apartment, maybe there's something there that will tell us where she went," Hawke said as he pulled on his leather flight jacket and headed out the door.

_TBC…_


	3. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or back story of Airwolf. All characters are property of Bellasario, CBS and whoever else created them. I only borrow them for short periods of time, harass them and put them back on the shelf My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

Survival

Chapter 3

Sunday - 7:30 pm

"Nothing!" Hawke said with a scowl on his face as he slammed shut a cabinet door in Caitlin's living room. "It's like she disappeared off the face of the Earth!"

"I hear ya, kid," nodded Dom in agreement as he stood in the middle of the room with his hands on his hips, "I think she's been working with Archangel and those spies at the Firm too long."

"That's it, Dom! Why I didn't think of it in the first place…"Hawke said as he quickly headed towards the door.

"That's what?" Dom asked as he raced to catch up with Hawke.

"Michael. I bet he'll know where she's at. You know none of us can leave for more than a day or two without him keeping tabs, " Hawke explained as he climbed behind the wheel of the Santini Air Jeep. Twenty minutes later they were pulling up in front of Knightsbridge, the west coast headquarters for The Firm.

"Don't you have a home, Archangel?" Dom asked as he and Hawke walked into the spy's office.

"Yes, a very nice one in fact, Dominic," the exquisitely tailored and groomed spy answered back dryly. "But every time I try to leave, someone comes barreling into my office demanding my attention."

"Enough chit chat," Hawke interrupted sternly. "Look, Michael, I'm going to ask you something and I want a straight answer…none of your spy rhetoric. Got it?"

Archangel started to come back at the pilot with one of his usual retorts but changed his mind when he saw the look in Hawke's eyes. "Depends on the question, Hawke, but I'll do what I can…"

"Caitlin. Where is she?" Hawke demanded.

The question puzzled the spy. The Airwolf crew was usually inseparable, or at least had tabs on each other at all times. "I don't know, Hawke. You mind telling me why you're asking ME that?"

"C'mon, Michael.." Hawke answered, ignoring Archangel's return inquiry, "I don't have time for games. Just tell me if you know where she is or not. And, if not, I want you to get on that all-knowing computer of yours and find her!"

"I told you, Hawke, I don't know," Archangel answered as he stood from behind his desk so he could look the younger man in the eyes. "Now, if she's missing, then I suggest you tell ME what YOU know. I can't have one of Airwolf's crew out there rogue somewhere!"

The two men stood staring each other down across the desk for the next several seconds until Dom finally stepped in. "Alright, Alright…I think we all need to just cool down. Look, String, if Archangel says he doesn't know where she is then he doesn't know."

"Now, would someone mind telling me what this is all about?" Michael asked as he retook his seat behind his desk and Hawke sank into a nearby chair as well. Dom proceeded to quickly explain the events of the previous day and Hawke's 'feeling' that something was wrong. While not going into detail about why Caitlin had taken off for the weekend, the spy was pretty adept at reading between the lines.

"So, you have nothing more to go on than just this 'feeling?'" Michael asked as he thoughtfully stroked his mustache. He, too, had learned not to take Stringfellow Hawke's instincts lightly. "You know if you're wrong and you interrupt her long weekend for nothing, you're going to have one mad redhead on your hands?"

"I'm not wrong, Michael. Now are you going to help us find her or not?" Hawke asked with a glare.

Without saying another word, Michael picked up the phone on his desk and asked for his latest assistant, Greta, to come in.

"Yes, sir?" the leggy brunette asked as she entered the office.

"I need you to input Caitlin O'Shannessy's information into the computers. I need to know any credit card activity or information we have on her for the last twenty four hours."

"Yes, sir," Greta said as she headed out the door to complete the task. "I should have that for you in about 10 minutes."

"Thank you, Michael," Hawke said wearily as Dom laid a supportive hand on his shoulder. He just prayed that Michael's computer would come through as his feeling of dread had done nothing but grow steadily since they had left Caitlin's apartment. It was almost as if being in her personal surroundings had strengthened the connection between them. He didn't know why or what, but he knew that something bad had happened to his best friend and the woman he had fallen in love with. He also sensed that whatever had happened, time was of the essence. And that time was running out quickly.

AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW

Sunday – 9:00 pm

Caitlin opened her eyes only to find herself immersed in almost total darkness. Nightfall had overtaken the mountainside and a chill filled the air. "_Damn_," she thought as she waited for her eyes to adjust to the blackness that seemed to envelop her. She moaned in pain as an involuntary shiver racked her battered body as a cool night breeze blew over her. Weak with what was surely a loss of blood from her injuries and a lack of food and water, Caitlin knew she had to get some type of sustenance into her as soon as possible.

Searching the surrounding ground with her hand, she finally came across the purse she had managed to recover earlier. Rummaging blindly inside of it with her fingers, she found the thermos of coffee. Pulling it out of the bag and bringing it to her side, she slowly brought her other hand over and loosened the top. It had been over twenty four hours since she had gone over the edge of the mountainside and she knew the once hot liquid inside the thermos would now be cold and do nothing to warm her. At this point, she didn't care…she just knew that she was quickly dehydrating and her body needed liquids. Being unable to sit up, it was a difficult effort, but she finally managed to get some of the tepid coffee into her.

Laying her head back down, exhausted from the mere few minutes of movement, Caitlin began to feel the tears flow. "_I can barely take a drink, how in the hell am I going to make another 48 hours?" _ She had tried to speak the words out loud but her voice had turned hoarse and even that was almost too much. Caitlin O'Shannessy had never been a quitter but at that moment, giving up seemed a tempting option.

Until a certain memory came flooding back to her. It was of a time that she and Dom and Hawke had spent together up at the cabin about a year earlier, not long after the Horn incident in which String had been brainwashed. Hawke had been even more quiet and moody than usual since that incident had happened and that particular weekend he had spent most of his time out on the dock with his cello serenading the lake's resident eagle. Cait had begun to feel that he was making an extra effort to separate himself from her.

Dom, while never actually having been told or asking about what happened in the compound when Cait had gone in to rescue Hawke, had somehow sensed that something important had happened between the two that day. It was from that moment on that Dom had noticed a change in how Hawke treated Caitlin. Even if no one else could see it, Dom could tell that Hawke's feelings for the red-haired pilot had changed…deepened. He could also see the separation that Hawke had been forcing between the two. It didn't take much for Dominic to realize that Hawke had fallen in love with Cait and was worried about her safety. It all harkened back to Hawke's belief in his curse that anyone he loved too much would die. On the surface it was a ridiculous notion, but strangely enough, there did seem to be damning evidence to the contrary.

So that weekend at the cabin, when Dom witnessed Cait's distress and worry over Hawke's behavior, he had taken Caitlin aside and explained why Hawke was acting the way he was. Hawke would have killed Dom if he had known that he was telling Caitlin all about Gabrielle and the rest, but Dom knew that Cait needed to know, to understand. And Caitlin did. She just didn't know what to do about it.

Knowing that information, however, was the main reason that when Hawke finally asked her out a week earlier, that it had thrown her for such a loop. She knew what it must have taken for him to bring himself to that point and while he had never said anything, she realized that how much he must care for her to risk losing her. At least that's the way he must have seen it in his own mind.

"_I can't give up. I can't die…not now!" _Cait suddenly realized. _"I have to be the one that proves Hawke's curse wrong. He deserves that much from me. I have to stay alive, if not for me, then him. I have to find my way out of this mess and back to him. Why did I ever hesitate when he asked me out? He's the only man I've ever wanted and now, not only may I lose him but I might be the confirmation of his own worst fear. I can't do that. I WON"T do that!" _ More than ever, Caitlin was now determined to find a way to survive.

_TBC…_


	4. Chapter 4

_Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or back story of Airwolf. All characters are property of Bellasario, CBS and whoever else created them. I only borrow them for short periods of time, harass them and put them back on the shelf My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

Survival

**Chapter** 4

Monday - 1:15 a.m.

Cait's hands were raw and bloody from digging and she was completely exhausted. Still not much progress had been made. After making up her mind to fight her situation with everything she had, she knew that her first order of business had to be to try and free herself from under the wreckage of the car. Her legs weren't working, or at least she couldn't feel them, so her hands were her only tools. The car covered her up from about her navel down so she thought that if she could start digging the dirt out on each side of her and basically make two small tunnels next to her legs that maybe she could get loose enough to drag herself out from underneath the vehicle. Things started off well but before long she kept hitting the mountainous rock that lay underneath the top layer of soil. After several hours and false starts, Caitlin had to admit to herself that it was probably a useless cause. Too tired to carry on, she allowed herself another sip of the coffee that was quickly disappearing from the thermos and a small handful of peanuts.

"_Well, if I can't get to them, then they'll just have to find me," _Cait reasoned. _"And I'll have to find a way to help them do just that." _Earlier she had rummaged through the contents in her purse and had found a couple of things that she thought might help her with that but her plan required sunlight and she'd have to wait until morning. Reluctantly she decided that, as much as the thought of going to sleep and not waking up scared her, that it would be impossible to stay awake for the next two days if that's how long it took to get rescued. Therefore, she allowed herself to be pulled into the darkness of unconsciousness once more, her body demanding the rest. But not before sending out one final thought to Hawke…_"don't worry, String…I'll be here when you come, no matter how long it takes. I promise, I won't leave you…" _

**AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW**

Monday – 3:30 a.m.

"C'mon, String, I'm as worried about her as you are but we gotta take a break. Neither one of us are going to be any good to her if we crash The Lady because we fall asleep!" Dom bemoaned as he stretched in his seat at Airwolf's engineering console.

Several hours earlier, Archangel's computer search for Caitlin had been somewhat successful. By tracking credit card activity, they had been able to determine that she had rented a car in L.A. and had traveled east, roughly following Interstate 40 where she had stopped at gas stations in several towns such as Lake Havasu, Flagstaff and Gallup. Her last known location had been a little gas station just outside of Albuquerque at a little after 7:00 p.m. on Saturday night.

"I'm not tired, Dom," Hawke answered matter-of-factly as he continued traveling the search pattern he was following over the Cibola National Forest near Albuquerque.

"Yeah, well I don't believe that, kid. And anyways, I am!" Dom chided sternly but Hawke just seemed to ignore him. Taking a deep breath and softening his voice, Dom tried again. "Look, String, all we're doing right now is flying around in circles. There's a lot of forest and rough terrain down there, too much to cover without narrowing things down a bit. Let's at least set her down, grab a quick bite and try to figure out a way to narrow our search parameters. What do you say?"

As much as he hated to admit it, Hawke knew that Dom was right. Searching blindly over heavily forested area was never going to get them anywhere. Even if Cait were right below them, between the darkness and thick cover of foliage, they would never see her. They had to come up with a better strategy.

"Fine, Dom…find me a clearing somewhere and let's set her down. But I'm telling you…I'm taking off again at dawn whether we know anything more or not. Got it?"

"I wouldn't expect anything else, String," Dom agreed with a sigh. While he was glad he'd convinced Hawke to take a break, he could also see the wear and tear that the whole situation was causing on the younger man. Hawke had grown more and more withdrawn with each passing hour. God forbid that something really had happened to Caitlin. If she didn't return home safe and sound, Dom was afraid that he'd lose String, too.

_TBC…_

_Sorry for the short chapter..just wanted to get another one up for you today. And I hope you guys haven't minded the ride on the Angst Train. The muse seems to have bought a permanent pass for it! There will be more angst to come but I promise, there will eventually be some light at the end of the tunnel (I think!). Stay tuned ;) _


	5. Chapter 5

_Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or back story of Airwolf. All characters are property of Bellasario, CBS and whoever else created them. I only borrow them for short periods of time, harass them and put them back on the shelf My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

Survival

**Chapter** 5

Monday - 6:20 am

The chiming of the communication channel on Airwolf awoke Hawke with a start from where he had reluctantly fallen asleep in the pilot's seat. "Dammit" he swore to himself, upset that he had allowed even just a couple of hours to pass without looking for Cait. He could hear Dom stirring behind him as he reached to open the channel.

"Good morning, gentlemen," Archangel's image said as he appeared on the monitor. "I take it you had no luck last night?"

"Does it look like we did, Michael?" Hawke retorted with irritation. "Now do you have something or are you just wasting our time with useless questions?"

"String!" Dom reprimanded from behind him. "Give the man a chance, huh?"

"Thank you, Dominic." Michael said with a grateful nod, although he truly understood where Hawke's frustration was coming from and had learned long ago not to take Stringfellow Hawke's moodiness personally. "And I do think I have some good news. We may know where Caitlin's planned final destination was."

"Well, out with it Michael," Hawke demanded impatiently. "We've already wasted enough time."

"Well this morning we received a notification of a cancellation fee for a charge on Caitlin's credit card at a spa called 'Rejuvenation' in the mountains just outside of Santa Fe. Evidently she had made the reservation several weeks ago for this weekend and was supposed to show up Saturday night but never made it. This morning they cancelled her reservation and charged a no-show fee. "

"Why didn't you see this before, Michael?" Hawke asked tersely.

"Because we were looking at charges in the last 24-48 hours, not from several weeks ago," Michael explained. "I've had Greta upload the coordinates of the spa into your system. You should be able to get there in about 30 minutes in Airwolf from your current location."

"I've got them," Dom acknowledged as he brought them up on his console. "This will really help narrow down our search."

"Yeah, thanks, Michael," Hawke replied gratefully. "We'll head there now and let you know what happens." Hawke reached over and shut off the monitor. "C'mon Dom," he instructed as he reached for his flight helmet, "Let's head to that spa and see what we can find out."

**AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW**

Monday – 7:30 a.m.

Caitlin awakened to the sunshine just beginning to peek over the mountainside. The air was still chilly but the warm sun felt good on her face. However, she was having trouble bringing herself out of the unconscious fog she had fallen into the night before. Her brain was cloudy and she felt much weaker than ever before. Her body wanted nothing more than to slip back into the darkness but in her mind she knew that she had to fight that feeling and begin her plan to let someone know where she was. She sensed that her chances for survival were reducing drastically with every passing hour and that every time she allowed herself to drift back into unconsciousness there was a greater and greater risk of not coming out of it again.

Reaching around she grabbed the thermos and took a few tiny sips of the coffee, barely enough to wet her now-chapped lips. She could tell that there were only a few drops left in the thermos and stopped herself from taking anymore even though her throat seemed as dry as a desert.

"_Okay, O'Shannessy, buck up. Daddy taught you how to take care of yourself a long time ago when he challenged you to find your own solution to those monsters under your bed. The monsters here are much bigger and badder but you found your way out of that problem then and you'll do it now. You just focus on getting back to Hawke and Dom. We've all been in bad situations before and we've made it and you can do it again! Heck, after Horn and all those other Airwolf missions you've been a part of, this is a piece of cake…" _

Cait instinctively smiled at the thought of the first time she had told Hawke that something was a 'piece of cake'. It had been just before her first stunt for Santini Air and right after Hawke had given her that knee-buckling kiss on the movie set. Since then, her life had probably been anything but 'a piece of cake' but she had loved every minute of it and wouldn't have given it up for anything. And she wasn't about to lose it now.

Reaching beside her, she felt around for the object she had pulled out of her purse the night before. It was a fabric envelope about 3 inches square. Inside was a mirror that she used for quick make-up applications and touch ups. Taking the mirror out of its covering she quickly brought it up to her face. The image she saw took her breath away. She knew she was in bad shape but staring back at her was a face that was muddied, cut and bruised, and her skin was as white as death itself. It made her shudder.

"_Can't think about that now!" _she quickly admonished herself. _"At least you're still alive!" _She quickly turned the mirror around and focused on finding the position of the sun above her. Angling the mirror until she caught the sun's reflection, she quickly began to flick and move the mirror so that the light bounced off of it. Luckily it was turning out to be a clear day with lots of sunlight. Her plan was simple…she would send reflective flashes out in defined, repetitive patterns hoping that if someone saw them, they would know they were not random reflections of light and come looking for their origin. She had no idea how far her flashes could reach off the mountainside, and truthfully, maybe they weren't reaching any further than her own line of sight, but it was her only option at this point. She had to try. So she began, with a simple SOS pattern, praying that the only plan she had was one that would work.

_TBC…_


	6. Chapter 6

_Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or back story of Airwolf. All characters are property of Bellasario, CBS and whoever else created them. I only borrow them for short periods of time, harass them and put them back on the shelf My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

Survival

**Chapter** 6

Monday 8:45 a.m.

Dom and Hawke had flown directly to the spa to see if they could gain any more clues as to where Caitlin had gone. Unfortunately no one they spoke to had seen or heard from her since she had made the reservation several weeks earlier and could give no further insight as to why she hadn't shown up. Finally, as they were about to give up, a young woman in her 20's came up and introduced herself to the two men.

"Excuse me? My name is Wendy and I'm the weekend receptionist here. Did you say your friend was supposed to come in Saturday night?"

"Yes, do you know something?" Hawke asked rather abruptly, apparently giving the young girl a fright with his intense stare as she almost jumped back from him.

"Uhm, don't mind him ma'am…he's just had a long night. Believe me his bark is much worse than his bite, " Dom jumped in trying to ease the girl's nerves as he shot Hawke an exasperating glace. "It's just that we really need to find our friend, we're afraid something bad may have happened to her…is there something you can tell us?" he gently asked.

" I'm not sure it will help…"

"Please, ma'am, anything you tell us would be appreciated," Dom encouraged.

"Well, we had a couple of other cancellations for Saturday night, too. See, there was this rock slide out on the mountain road leading up here and people couldn't get through. When Ms. O'Shannessy didn't show, I just figured she had gone back to Santa Fe and had gotten a hotel room for then night like the others did. They had the road cleared by lunchtime on Sunday and she should have been able to get through then but I just figured she decided to go back home or something."

"Where exactly was this slide?" Hawke asked quickly.

"About 10 miles back down the mountain."

"Would there have been any other way around?" Hawke asked.

"Not really. I mean there used to be an old logging road about a ½ mile from there that would have taken you around but that hasn't been used in years and it wouldn't even be passable for someone in a regular car anymore. As a matter of fact the county is supposed to be closing it off completely because it's too dangerous to pass…full of ruts and rock slides and parts of the road washing away completely during the rainy season," Wendy explained. "Oh No, you don't think…"

Dom and Hawke glanced at each other, each realizing that that was EXACTLY what they were thinking. Cait would have tried to find her way around and in doing so may have gotten herself into a real messy situation.

"Thanks, Miss," Dom yelled over his shoulder as he and Hawke immediately took off for the clearing where they had left Airwolf. "Dammit, Dom…I've got a really bad feeling about this," Hawke said as he climbed into the helicopter. "If she went over that mountain side…" Hawke couldn't even finish the sentence.

"Yeah, I know, me too," Dom agreed. "But don't give up on her, Hawke. We don't know for sure that's what happened and anyways, Cait's a smart cookie. She knows how to take care of herself," Dom said, probably trying to calm himself as much as Hawke. 

An hour after leaving the spa, the two were still searching the area as best as they could but the rough terrain and copious underbrush was making the search difficult, even with all of Airwolf's technology. The two men weren't sure whether they should be relieved that they hadn't found anything or even more worried than before.

**AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW**

Cait had been signaling for what seemed like hours. What she had started with some semblance of hope was now turning into frustration, fear, and desperation. As much as she tried, it was getting harder and harder for her to stay positive. She was exhausted, in pain, dehydrated, and hungry. Truth be known, she had probably slipped into shock a long time ago. The only thing that had kept her going this long had been the thought of staying alive for Hawke. But as the hours passed, the thought of trying to make it another 24 hours or more on the side of that mountain seemed an impossible task…no matter how much she wanted to she just wasn't sure she had the strength to keep on.

"_I've got to stop thinking about the pain and just focus on the signals," _Cait realized. "_This is going to work…it HAS to! In the meantime you have to think about something else." _Cait's mind began to wander back to another time when she was frightened. She was on the contaminated island with Hawke and they were searching through all the dead bodies in the facility. He had told her that she should sing a song to get her mind off of her surroundings. Caitlin had been unable to think of anything but Mary Had A Little Lamb and thought it was quite silly but started singing anyways. Hawke had been right…for a few moments it took her mind off the horrors around her and did help in calming her nerves. "_Maybe that will work now," _she thought.

Taking as deep a breath as she dared, she started to sing as she continued with her signals. Her voice was low and very hoarse but concentrating on the words and the tune were enough to help ease her nerves a little. She smiled a little as she continued to sing…_"Damn Hawke, you're saving me again…aren't you?". _ If she only knew…

**AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW**

Hawke and Dom had decided to make one last pass over the logging road and surrounding area before figuring out their next move. Hawke had been so sure he was right…he couldn't understand not finding Caitlin. And if she wasn't there, then where in the world was she? He had no more clues on where to look. It was beginning to feel like SinJin all over again and that was a feeling that scared the hell out of him.

"What the…?" Dom suddenly exclaimed with a puzzled tone in his voice from his position at the engineering console. He had been scanning the ground the best he could with both visual and audio scanners for hours but to no avail. As much as he would never admit it, he, too, was beginning to get a really bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. He knew if they didn't find Caitlin soon…well, it wasn't something he wanted to think about. But then he heard the faintest of sounds coming through his headset…something just a little different than he had heard before. Scanning through the frequencies and trying to clear the static out of it, he couldn't quite believe his ears.

"You got something, Dom?" Hawke asked half-heartedly, by this point not allowing himself to expect much.

"I don't know, kid…I mean it doesn't make much sense…" Dom said perplexed as he made some more adjustments on his instrument panel. "I think I've listened so hard trying to find something that my hearing must be playing tricks on me."

"Well…you have something or not?" Hawke asked getting more frustrated by the moment.

"Well…you're going to think I'm crazy…but I swear I heard "Mary Had A Little Lamb. It was faint and really rough but I think someone was singing Ma…."

Before he could finish his sentence, Hawke had turned on his headset and ordered Dom to send the signal to him. Hawke knew in his gut that it had to be Caitlin…but he had to hear for himself. "Dammit, Dom, I don't hear anything….Find that signal!" he ordered.

"Really, String…I'm not even sure that's what I heard. I mean it doesn't make any sense…"

"Yes, it does, Dom. It's Cait…we just have to hone in on that signal. I don't care how faint it is…FIND IT!"

Dom had no idea why Hawke was so sure it was Cait but he knew better than to question the younger man. "Got it!" he said as he dialed in another frequency. Sure enough, Hawke could just begin to make out the most beautiful sound he thought he had ever heard; an out of tune, hoarse, throat-catching rendition of Mary Had A Little Lamb. Hawke couldn't help the tears that started running down his cheeks.

"Dom, get me the coordinates on that signal! It's Caitlin."

"Mama Mia!," Dom exclaimed as he worked to find the coordinates of the audio signal. "She sounds horrible, String."

"Yeah, but she's alive. Right now that's all that matters. We've got to get to her."

Within minutes, Dom had the coordinates marked and he and String were headed that way.

"There!" Dom announced as he studied the ground radar. "Mother of God," Dom barely whispered as he closed in on the area. Bringing up the camera view, they could see the bottom half of Caitlin's overturned car and zooming in…they could finally see her trapped under it.

"Get me a place to land!" Hawke ordered once he was able to get his breath back after seeing the scene below him.

"Dammit, String. There's no way we can land The Lady on the side of this piece of rock. There's just not enough room and it's too steep!" Dom bemoaned as he searched frantically for someplace to set down.

Without hesitating, Hawke began removing his helmet and turned control of the aircraft over to Dom. "Give me the first aid supplies, Dom. And some water." 

"What do you think you're doing, kid?" Dom asked, afraid he already knew what the answer was.

"I'm going down. You're going to get me as low to the ground as you can and then we'll lower me by rope. As soon as I get down…you're going to fly out of here and get us some help to get Caitlin out of here."

"That's pretty dangerous, kid…" Dom started to say but was quickly interrupted by Hawke.

"If you think I'm leaving her here alone any longer…just get me the first aid kit, Dom. She doesn't have time for us to argue about this…"

Dom knew that Hawke had a point. Judging by what he could see, Cait needed help sooner than later and there wasn't any option. Anyways, he knew there was no way he'd be able to change String's mind. "Just be careful, String…I don't need to come back and rescue two of you!"

Within minutes, Hawke found himself on the ground about a quarter of a mile from Cait . He turned and gave Dom a high sign to indicate he'd made it down safely and then turned and headed towards the wreckage…praying he still had time. "_Just keep singing, Cait…I'm coming."_

_TBC…_

_Okay folks. That's my second chapter for the day. I'm sorry to leave you hanging right before the reunion but I may not have time to get anything else up today or over the weekend. But I promise I'll try and do my best to get something up as quickly as possible _


	7. Chapter 7

_Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or back story of Airwolf. All characters are property of Bellasario, CBS and whoever else created them. I only borrow them for short periods of time, harass them and put them back on the shelf My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

Survival

**Chapter** 7

"_Mary had a li…"_ Cait tried to keep singing but the effort was wearing her out and she could feel herself fading and beginning to slip back into the blackness. For a moment she had thought she had heard something that sounded like Airwolf but looking around she couldn't see anything and soon convinced herself that she was beginning to hallucinate. "_Face it, girl…they're not coming. Hell, they don't even know where you're at. You've put up a good fight but it's just too hard…" _Caitlin felt the tears start to run down her cheeks as she closed her eyes and let the darkness begin to pull her under.

"Caitlin!"

Caitlin's eyes snapped open as she held her breath. Surely she must still be hallucinating but she could have sworn she had heard Hawke calling her name. _"You really are losing it,"_ she thought. _"But even if it's not real, it's nice to hear his voice again…"_

"Caitlin! Dammit, answer me!" Hawke knew he must be nearing the crash site but with the thick undergrowth it wasn't as easy to spot from the ground as it had been from Airwolf. He needed Caitlin to let him know he was headed in the right direction. "Caitlin! It's Hawke. I need you to answer me !"

"Hawke?" Caitlin tried to answer, beginning to hope beyond hope that maybe this wasn't a hallucination. However her throat was dry and she had expended almost all of her energy earlier. She would never be able to get him to hear her if it really was him. Realizing she still held her mirror in her hand, she began angle it back and forth so that the sun would reflect off of it again. If he was close, maybe he'd see it. After all, if it was Hawke, then for all she knew her signaling had worked the first time.

Hawke was growing desperate. He needed to find Caitlin but the terrain was difficult and he needed to make sure that he didn't send himself over a ledge somewhere in his effort to get to her. "Caitlin!," he called once more. Stopping to listen he tried to take in his surroundings and orient himself when something caught the corner of his eye, a small flash of light. Knowing that it could be anything he waited and, sure enough, just to his right and from down the mountain about 50 feet, he saw it again. "Thatta Girl!" he said as he breathed a sigh of relief as he headed to the tree line between himself and the light he had seen.

Breaking through the trees, Hawke saw the overturned car just in front of him. Running around the end of the car he came to a stop when he saw Caitlin on the ground, pale, wind burnt, scraped and battered. For a moment, his mind went back to Gabrielle and the moment he found her in the desert after Moffet had finished with her. "Dammit! Not again!" he said under his breath as he dropped to his knees and bent over Caitlin. "Caitlin, can you hear me?" he asked as he gently stroked a wisp of hair out of her eyes.

"Hawke?" Caitlin whispered in true disbelief. She could see his face and hear his voice as clear as day but refused to let herself believe that it was really him. She had truly convinced herself that he was nothing more than a figment of her imagination.

"Yeah, baby…I'm here. It's going to be okay, now. Just hang on. Dom's coming back with help," Hawke said as he reached for the water and gently wiped some across her chapped lips…again memories of Gabrielle filling his mind. _"But this isn't Gabrielle and you're NOT going to lose Caitlin…not this time!" _Hawke thought as he gently picked up Caitlin's head and shoulders and cradled them in his lap. "C'mon Caitlin, stay awake and talk to me!" he insisted as he poured a tiny sip of water down her and gently pinched her cheeks to try and bring her back into a full consciousness.

Looking up into Hawke's steel-blue eyes, eyes that were like none other she had ever known, Caitlin's mind began to grasp the fact that he was really there…this wasn't a dream. "Hawke…it's really you!" she said as she looked into the face she thought she would never see again.

A grin forming on his lips, Hawke looked back down at the red-haired pilot and simply stated…"I know that."

At that moment, Caitlin knew he was real and even with as much pain as she was in, she couldn't help but smile back and chuckle softly remembering the time so long ago she had responded to him in the exact same way. It didn't take long for the joy to turn to fear though. Caitlin was nothing if not a realist and she knew that she was in bad shape. As happy as she was to have survived long enough for Hawke to get to her, the last thing she wanted was to die in his arms. She couldn't do that to him. Not after all of this.

"Caitlin, what is it?" Hawke asked with concern as he saw her expression turn fearful.

Unable to look him in the eyes any longer, Caitlin turned her head away. "It's just…." She started to explain but couldn't make herself finish.

"It's just what?" Hawke asked as he gently turned her head back towards him. "Caitlin, talk to me."

Her voice barely a whisper, Caitlin made herself say the words. "The curse, I was supposed to be the one to prove that there wasn't any curse over your head. I tried so hard but I'm so tired, Hawke. I'm so sorry, I don't want to hurt you. Please, just don't blame yourself. "

Hawke's reply stuck in his throat as he realized the struggles that Caitlin must have gone through the last 2 days…not just the physical but the emotional. He could read the meaining between her words and realized that her fight for survival had been more than just a will to stay alive for herself but also a fight to break his curse…the damn curse that he couldn't seem to get away from, no matter how much he tried. And now Caitlin, the one he loved more than anyone else, had been caught up in it was going to pay for allowing himself to drag her into his deadly web. And on top of that, she was blaming herself.

Looking back into her fearful eyes, Hawke knew that no matter how things turned out, he couldn't let her keep on believing that she had failed him in anyway. It was his burden to carry, not hers. "Shhh, I don't want to hear that, Cait. You've brought me nothing but happiness and love. Don't you ever apologize for that, baby. I'm just so sorry that you have to go through this because of me. The last thing I ever want is to hurt you. It's why I pushed you away for so long, don't you know that?"

"It's not your fault…" Cait started but was interrupted by Hawke's thumb being gently placed over her lips.

"It IS my fault, Cait. I knew better than to allow myself to fall in love with you but I couldn't help it. You've always been here for me. You and Dom, you're my family and I couldn't deny my feelings any longer. I should have been stronger and turned you away. You would have hurt for a little while but, in the long run, you would have been safe. Forgive me," Hawke couldn't stop his own tears as he hung his head in shame.

"NO!" Cait said with as much force as she could muster. "This didn't happen because you loved me. It's an accident, that all, a dumb accident. If we had the chance to do it all over again, I would because falling in love with you has been the happiest thing in my whole life."

Hawke leaned over and kissed her on her forehead. How had he gotten so lucky to have this woman in his life? He vowed that no matter what he would get her out of this mess…and ALIVE. But how? Just then he cocked his head as he heard the tell-tale sound of Airwolf's engines coming into the skies above him.

"How's it going down there, kid?" he heard Dom ask in a nervous voice over the radio that he had brought with him from the chopper. Hawke reached for his mic…."Dom, she's alive but we need help now!" he advised his mentor. "I hope you brought someone with you."

"Sure did, String. I've got a full mountain rescue team headed down from the spot in the road where Cait went over the side. They should be getting to you in about 10 minutes. We're going to get our girl out of there…just tell her to hang on! Tell her I've got bookkeeping piling up at the hangar and I can't afford to have her goofing off anymore," Dom said at an attempt at lightheartedness to ease everyone's mind.

Hawke breathed out a sigh of relief and threw up a thumbs up sign to Dom as he turned his attention back to Cait. "See, baby, help's coming. You better hang on or Dom's gonna….Cait?!" Hawke realized that he was getting no response and soon saw that Cait had again lost consciousness. "Damn! C'mon Cait…don't you dare give up on me now! Where's that famous Texas stubbornness? Fight, baby!" he ordered. Cait didn't stir in his arms and for a moment, Hawke thought his curse had reared it's head once again. Leaning down so that he was directly over her mouth, Hawke almost cried out with relief as he felt the smallest of breaths on his cheek…she was still alive. But for how long…

Within minutes the rescue team had reached them and began extricating Cait from the wreckage. Hawke could do nothing but stand back and watch, helplessly. It took almost an hour to get her free and back up the hill to a waiting ambulance. Hawke climbed in behind her and just glared at the paramedic when they started to tell him he couldn't ride in the back with her. Hawke won that battle but it would be a small victory if Cait didn't make it.

Dom watched from above in Airwolf and monitored the radio traffic of the rescue workers as they freed Caitlin. There was no doubt that she was in serious condition. Right now, it was touch and go at best. All he could do was pray and watch. As the ambulance finally pulled away from the scene, Dom followed. "God in Heaven, for BOTH of them, let that girl be alright!"

_TBC…_

_Okay…so this chapter didn't turn out quite the way I planned and I have to admit that writing it was really tough. I'm not sure I'm completely happy with it but it is what it is. There will probably be one more chapter which I'll get to as soon as I can. Thanks to everyone for their interest and feedback on this one! It means a lot. _


	8. Chapter 8

_Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or back story of Airwolf. All characters are property of Bellasario, CBS and whoever else created them. I only borrow them for short periods of time, harass them and put them back on the shelf My stories are for entertainment purposes only. _

Survival

**Chapter** 8

The next three days passed by in a blur for Hawke and Dom. Upon arrival to the hospital in Santa Fe, Caitlin had immediately been taken to the trauma unit and then into surgery. It was the wee hours of Tuesday morning before Dom and Hawke received any type of word on Caitlin's condition from the doctors.

"I'm not going to lie, it was a little dicey," explained the surgeon that had come in to speak with the anxiously awaiting pilots. "However, I think that with some intensive rehab and good support, she'll make a full recovery."

"Well, thank God for that!" Dom had exclaimed. Hawke had been unable to speak and simply collapsed into a chair behind him.

"You can also thank the fact that your friend was driving a car with a soft convertible top," the doctor had gone on to inform them. "When the car rolled over onto her legs, the top molded around her limbs instead of completely crushing them. I'm not saying there wasn't a lot of damage done but it could have been a lot worse."

"Can we see her?" Hawke asked softly, still in a fog from all that had occurred in the last few days.

"Not now," the doctor advised. "She's still coming out of anesthesia and she needs her rest. And from the look of things…so do you two. There's nothing you can do for a while anyways. I'm going to keep her under sedation for the next 24 to 48 hours. Her body needs the recovery time and I want to monitor her fluid intakes and get her hydrated again. She'll be in ICU for a couple of days at least."

"I'm not leaving," Hawke said simply. Dom had started to protest but one look at the younger man and he realized it would be like arguing with the wall behind him.

"Any place you can put us up, doc? We wanna stay close. I'm sure you'll understand," Dom pleaded with the doctor.

"Well, it's not usual…but sure. I'll have the nurse clear out a room for you. Once you get some sleep, I'll arrange it so you can see Ms. O'Shannessy in the morning."

The doctor had been true to his word and for the next two days, Hawke and Dom had taken turns sitting at Cait's bedside. Even though she was still sedated, Hawke had needed the reassurance of just watching her breathe…he was having a hard time convincing himself that Caitlin was going to be okay after what he had witnessed at the crash site. She had been so pale and weak…it had scared him more than he had even admitted to himself.

Dom watched with worry over his surrogate son as Hawke kept vigil over Caitlin. Even though the doctors assured them that Cait would be okay, String seemed to withdraw more and more into himself with each passing hour. Dom knew he had to do something.

"Dammit, String…Caitlin's going to be fine! Why won't you believe that?" Dom had chastised Hawke one afternoon as they sat in the cafeteria where Dom had eaten but Hawke had done little more than push the food around on his plate.

"Not until I see it with my own eyes, Dom," Hawke had responded. "I believe in results, not promises…"

"Oh for heaven's sake, kid…Caitlin isn't Gabrielle!" Dom had made the comment hoping to get through to the younger man and it certainly seemed to strike a chord.

"Don't you dare drag Gabrielle into this, Dom!" Hawke had retorted sharply. "She has nothing to do with this!"

"That's exactly right, String. Gabrielle, your parents, Sinjin…none of them have anything to do with this! So quit being such a martyr and feeling sorry for your damn self and start thinking about Caitlin in there. She's the one going through hell…not YOU! Hmmph!" Dom said with an exasperated sigh.

"How dare you…" Hawke began to argue back but was interrupted by the older man before he could say anything further.

"No, Stringfellow Hawke…how dare YOU!" Dom said in an angrier voice than Hawke had ever heard from the man. "That girl in there fought through 48 hours of pure hell to stay alive for you. You told me yourself that she said never gave up because she wanted to prove to you that that curse of yours is nothing more than poppycock. And you repay her by sitting here feeling sorry for yourself! Well I for one am glad that Caitlin isn't awake to see you in this state! As a matter of fact, I don't want to be around you right now, myself. I'm going to sit with Cait. Whenever you get your head on straight, you're more than welcome to join me, but not a second before!" Without another word, Dom turned and left Hawke sitting dumbfounded at the table.

Hawke had spent the next hour and half just walking around the hospital grounds and doing a lot of thinking. Maybe Dom (and Caitlin) were right…maybe it was time to move on from his belief in this stupid curse that everyone he loved too much was taken away from him. After all, Dom was still around after all of these years and Caitlin had gotten out of more than one scrape just to keep coming back to him. It was just that he had lived with his belief for so long, he wasn't sure how to let go and allow himself to start trusting again. But he knew that if he ever wanted a life with Caitlin, he'd have to find a way, she wasn't the kind of woman to just wait around for him to come to his senses. And he did want a life with her…or maybe more appropriately put, he knew he didn't want a life without her.

Knowing what he had to do, he headed back inside the hospital and to Caitlin's room in the ICU. But when he arrived, his heart stopped for several beats as he saw Caitlin's bed empty and a nurse stripping the sheets off the bed.

"Where is she!" he yelled as tears began to fill his eyes. To the nurse's surprise, he grabbed her by the shoulder and shook her demanding to know what had happened to Caitlin.

Hearing the commotion, Dom had come running from around the corner. Grabbing the distraught man from behind, he pulled him off the frightened nurse.

"String! Stop it! She's alright! Do you hear me? Caitlin's alright!"

"Don't lie to me, Dom!" Hawke said, his voice breaking with sobs.

"String…look at me, son! Caitlin's fine. As a matter a fact, she's more than fine. She's awake and they are moving her to a regular room. She's asking for you, String…do you understand me?" Dom pleaded with Hawke as he shook him back into reality.

"She's awake?" Dom's words finally registered with Hawke as he looked hopefully into the older man's face.

"Yeah, and she wants to see you. Your name was the first thing she said when she woke up," Dom said with a grin. "Now get yourself together and let's go see her, huh?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry Dom, it's just when I saw the empty bed…" 

"I know kid, it's alright. Although, you may have an apology to make to that sweet little nurse that you just scared half to death."

"Yeah, I guess I should, huh?" Hawke said with a half grin.

Putting his arm around the younger man, Dom let out a hearty laugh as he led String down the corridor to Caitlin's new room.

AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW

Entering Cait's room, Hawke saw the most beautiful sight he could ever remember seeing…Caitlin was propped up in bed, smiling at him. She was still pale and weak, but some of her color was returning, as well as the sparkle in her eyes.

"Hey there," she said as String walked over and sat gently on the bed next to her.

"Hey there, yourself," he said back with a slight smile.

"You know, we really have to start finding time to spend together when one of us isn't in a hospital bed or hurt. I mean I love that you want to be protective and take care of me but I'm hoping our first official date is something a little less adventurous and more romantic," Caitlin teased with a gleam in her eye.

"Date, huh? You sure you still want to do that?" Hawke asked, only half-joking.

"Are you kidding, why do you think I went through all of this? You promised me dinner and dancing and I wasn't about to let you renig on our deal. You don't get out of it that easy, Stringfellow Hawke!"

"Dancing, huh? I was kind of hoping you had forgotten about that part of it…"

"Nope, no way Hawke. As soon as these legs of mine are working right again, you're taking me to the fanciest place in town for dinner and dancing. No backing out on this one!"

Hawke's response sounded like a chuckle but Cait could see the doubt and worry in his eyes.

"Cait…you don't have to…."

"Nope..stop right there, String!" Caitlin ordered as soon as she heard the protest in his voice. "I meant it when I said you're not getting out of this. We have a date and I plan to keep it and I plan to have a lot more after that one. We've worked too hard to get to this point…unless of course you've changed your mind for some reason? And honestly, Hawke, I don't really think you could come up with one GOOD reason to back out on me now…can you?" Cait challenged.

Looking deep into her eyes, Hawke suddenly realized that she was right…there was no good reason; no curse, no challenge they couldn't handle together, and certainly no lack of love. Whatever had happened in his past, was just that…his past. Cait was his future and he could make that whatever he wanted as long as she was there with him. Leaning forward he gently embraced her and gave her a light kiss on the lips.

"Uh-uh, mister…I don't believe that was good enough," Cait said with a giggle as he pulled back from her. "I think we'd better do a second take, don't you?"

Hawke grinned as he leaned back in and gave her an even better version of the movie set kiss they had shared so long ago. And this one would have definitely made the director proud….

The End.


End file.
